Octopus Property provides a £5.0 million loan for hotel acquisition

We provided Bowling Green Asset Management with a £5.0 million loan for the acquisition of the Holiday Inn Stonehenge, in Wiltshire. Completed within four days, the deal demonstrates the ongoing appetite from borrowers for the type of swiftly executed flexible financing that we’re able to provide.

The 103-bed fully serviced, purpose built hotel benefits from further planning consents for an additional 47 bedrooms and a stand-alone restaurant on the wider 2.5 acre site. The 12 month multi phased facility includes a pre-approved further advance and represented the borrower’s first use of a short term loan facility from a specialist property lender.

Located in the heart of Wiltshire, the hotel benefits from its close proximity to Stonehenge, a world famous prehistoric monument which attracts over one million visitors annually. The hotel has a wide range of amenities including modern meeting rooms, an outdoor terrace area, on-site restaurant, air-conditioned rooms and free Wi-Fi.

The loan follows on from our record £80 million of new lending originated during November, as we continue to attract both new and existing borrowers to our growing Lifecycle Lending range of commercial, development and residential products.

“We are delighted to announce our second branded hotel acquisition of 2017, the 103 bedroom Holiday Inn Stonehenge, for a total SPA consideration of £12.5 million, which was completed with funding from Octopus Property. The SPA price equates to an attractive net initial yield of 9.25% and is well aligned with our ongoing acquisition strategy.”

Having been introduced the loan requirement by Steve Clinning of Howard Kennedy, one of our most trusted legal advisers, we relished the challenge of delivering the loan facility within four days. Bowling Green Asset Management is an established property investor who required funding at a crucial moment, having been let down by a major clearing bank.
The turnaround time speaks volumes for Octopus Property’s market leading expertise and the capabilities of our highly experienced team. By taking what was a seemingly complex loan arrangement and preventing a potential missed opportunity we’ve again highlighted why specialist lenders are becoming more popular with borrowers who continue to be frustrated by the delays they face when applying for financing with major banks.